An Urgent Call to Spent LIB Recycling: Whys and Wherefores for Graphite Recovery

Spent lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) are a key source for securing tons of raw materials that are valuable materials for LIB applications. However, the massive emerging volume of spent LIBs urgently needs a new management strategy to recycle/reuse all components of spent LIBs, particularly the graphite before it becomes a “future critical material” like Li and Co. Many elements in LIB electrodes can now be recycled, however graphite has till now, been largely overlooked. Some research groups have begun examining possible strategies for the reuse of graphite for energy storage applications. This work has delivered some promising results that may help to achieve this goal on an industrial scale This essay describes the importance of anode material recycling from spent lithium‐ion batteries (LIBs) from an economic view considering the future demand for graphite in the energy storage sector. It summarizes the current status of graphite recovery in LIB recycling industries and discusses the promising methods in the research stage for various applications, including energy storage, alongside the list of associated challenges.